Vestibular disorders (dizziness, vertigo, imbalance, coming from both peripheral labyrinthine disorders and central brain disorders) are ubiquitous problems in clinical medicine. They account for staggering numbers (4 million/year) of visits to emergency departments and often produce prolonged physical (and psychological) disability leading to a loss of economic productivity and a high risk of falls and injuries. The treatment of such disorders commonly requires physical therapy (PT) to encourage rebalancing of the vestibular system both with the patient still and when moving. Such patients are prescribed exercises of progressive difficulty which are usually effective when compliance is sustained (unfortunately not often the case). Exercises must be challenging yet performed safely, and be practiced frequently and for many minutes each day. Current approaches are often complex and difficult for patients to perform and/or endure.
It would therefore be advantageous to provide a more practical/flexible device than is currently available for stimulation of the vestibular system.